Why so many people think they're going to Camp Mather on July 6 (and they're not)

Camp Mather is a patch of land owned by the city of San Francisco just outside the gates of Yosemite National Park.

Camp Mather is a patch of land owned by the city of San Francisco just outside the gates of Yosemite National Park.

Photo: Carol Irvine / Honeymilk Studio

Photo: Carol Irvine / Honeymilk Studio

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Camp Mather is a patch of land owned by the city of San Francisco just outside the gates of Yosemite National Park.

Camp Mather is a patch of land owned by the city of San Francisco just outside the gates of Yosemite National Park.

Photo: Carol Irvine / Honeymilk Studio

Why so many people think they’re going to Camp Mather on July 6 (and they’re not)

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Every year, San Francisco families anxiously await acceptance emails to Camp Mather, the beloved family camp 20 miles outside Yosemite.

This year, emails started going out in early March, and word on the street is that a new design in the email has led a whole lot of people to think they’re all going on the same date and staying in the same cabin.

The reason is the signup process launches with a step-by-step example on how to reserve and make payments for a four-person cabin, beginning July 6. You have to click beyond the example to get your specific assignment, and not everyone is doing that.

“I was at a party yesterday and someone said they really should send out a second email because people at the party were convinced that half of San Francisco is going to arrive at Camp Mather on July 6th and head for that one cabin,” Elizabeth Weise of Glen Park wrote to SFGATE in an email.

San Francisco Recreation and Park spokesperson Madison Sink says the city is aware of the confusion, and they’ve amended the email so the example is clearly labeled “Sample Permit.”

“We will send an email to those who have already signed up for further clarification,” Sink said. “The entire process is online, and the reservations and waiting list notifications were emailed the first week in March.”

Camp Mather runs for 11 weeks and Sink says this year the city assigned 1,170 families reservations. Not every family who applies gets in; the system is based on a lottery. Swims in mountain lakes, campfire songs, and home-cooked meals served cafeteria-style in a big dining hall are all part of the experience.

This post was originally posted at https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Camp-Mather-July-6-date-confusion-email-acceptance-13697977.php.